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Gardner Watson posted an update 6 months ago
Sexuality is one of the fundamental mechanisms that work towards maintaining genetic diversity within a species. In diploid persimmons (Diospyros spp.), separated sexuality, the presence of separate male and female individuals (dioecy), is controlled by the Y chromosome-encoded small-RNA gene, OGI. On the other hand, sexuality in hexaploid Oriental persimmon (Diospyros kaki) is more plastic, with OGI-bearing genetically male individuals, able to produce both male and female flowers (monoecy). This is thought to be linked to the partial inactivation of OGI by a retrotransposon insertion, resulting in DNA methylation of the OGI promoter region. To identify the genetic factors regulating branch sexual conversion, genome-wide correlation/association analyses were conducted using ddRAD-Seq data from an F1 segregating population, and using both quantitative and diploidized genotypes, respectively. We found that allelic ratio at the Y-chromosomal region, including OGI, was correlated with male conversion based on quantitative genotypes, suggesting that OGI can be activated in cis in a dosage-dependent manner. Genome-wide association analysis based on diploidized genotypes, normalized for the effect of OGI allele dosage, detected three fundamental loci associated with male conversion. These loci underlie candidate genes, which could potentially act epigenetically for the activation of OGI expression.To understand plant growth and development, it is often necessary to investigate the organization of plant cells and plant cell walls. Plant cell walls are often fluorescently labeled for confocal imaging with the dye propidium iodide using a pseudo-Schiff reaction. This reaction binds free amine groups on dye molecules to aldehyde groups on cellulose that result from oxidation with periodic acid. We tested a range of fluorescent dyes carrying free amine groups for their ability to act as pseudo-Schiff reagents. Using the low-pH solution historically used for the Schiff reaction, these alternative dyes failed to label cell walls of Arabidopsis cotyledon vascular tissue as strongly as propidium iodide but replacing the acidic solution with water greatly improved fluorescence labeling. Under these conditions, rhodamine-123 provided improved staining of plant cell walls compared to propidium iodide. We also developed protocols for pseudo-Schiff labeling with ATTO 647N-amine, a dye compatible for super-resolution Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) imaging. ATTO 647N-amine was used for super-resolution imaging of cell wall ingrowths that occur in phloem parenchyma transfer cells of Arabidopsis, structures whose small size is only slightly larger than the resolution limit of conventional confocal microscopy. Application of surface-rendering software demonstrated the increase in plasma membrane surface area as a consequence of wall ingrowth deposition and suggests that STED-based approaches will be useful for more detailed morphological analysis of wall ingrowth formation. These improvements in pseudo-Schiff labeling for conventional confocal microscopy and STED imaging will be broadly applicable for high-resolution imaging of plant cell walls.
Proadrenomedullin (proADM), a vasodilatory peptide with antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties, predicts severe outcomes in adults with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) to a greater degree than C-reactive protein and procalcitonin. find more We evaluated the ability of proADM to predict disease severity across a range of clinical outcomes in children with suspected CAP.
We performed a prospective cohort study of children 3 months to 18 years with CAP in the emergency department (ED). Disease severity was defined as mild (discharged home), mild-moderate (hospitalized but not moderate-severe or severe), moderate-severe (e.g., hospitalized with supplemental oxygen, broadening of antibiotics, complicated pneumonia), and severe (e.g., vasoactive infusions, chest drainage, severe sepsis). Outcomes were examined using proportional odds logistic regression within the cohort with suspected CAP and in a subset with radiographic CAP.
Among 369 children, median proADM increased with disease severity . ProADM was significantly associated with increased odds of developing severe outcomes (suspected CAP odds ratio (OR) 1.68 , radiographic CAP OR 2.11 ) adjusted for age, fever duration, antibiotic use, and pathogen. ProADM had an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.64 (95%CI, 0.56,0.72) in those with suspected CAP and AUC 0.77 (95% CI, 0.68,0.87) in radiographic CAP.
ProADM was associated with severe disease and discriminated moderately well children who developed severe disease from those who did not, particularly in radiographic CAP.
ProADM was associated with severe disease and discriminated moderately well children who developed severe disease from those who did not, particularly in radiographic CAP.
The HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 075 study evaluated the feasibility of enrolling and retaining men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women (TWG) from Kenya, Malawi, and South Africa. Twenty-one participants acquired HIV during study follow-up (seroconverters). We analyzed HIV subtype diversity, drug resistance, transmission dynamics, and HIV superinfection among MSM and TGW enrolled in HPTN 075.
HIV genotyping and drug resistance testing was performed for HIV-positive participants who had viral loads >400 copies/mL at screening (prevalent cases, N=124) and seroconverters (N=21). HIV pol clusters were identified using Cluster Picker. Superinfection was assessed by longitudinal analysis of env and pol sequences generated by next-generation sequencing.
HIV genotyping was successful for 123/124 prevalent cases and all 21 seroconverters. The major HIV subtypes were A1 (Kenya) and C (Malawi and South Africa). Major drug resistance mutations were detected in samples from 21 (14.6%) of 144 participants; the most frequent mutations were K103N and M184V/I.
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